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readily

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English redily, rediliche, equivalent to ready +‎ -ly.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈɹɛdɪli/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Adverb

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readily (comparative readilier or more readily, superlative readiliest or most readily)

  1. Without unwillingness or hesitation; showing readiness.
    The suspect readily answered all questions the police officers asked him.
  2. Without impediment, easily.
    readily available;  readily achievable
    • 1983, Richard Ellis, The Book of Sharks, Knopf, →ISBN, page 28:
      Light does not pass through water nearly as readily as it passes through air, and in order to function efficiently, an animal that lives in the water must rely on other senses in addition to light.
    • 2013 July 20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
      Plastics are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily. Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene. Terrestrial bacteria and fungi which can manage this trick are already familiar to experts in the field.

Translations

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